This section is intended to introduce the reader to various aspects of the art that may be related to various aspects of the present invention. The following discussion is intended to provide information to facilitate a better understanding of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be understood that statements in the following discussion are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
The Access Network Discovery and Selection Function (ANDSF) is an entity introduced by 3GPP as part of their Release 8 set of specifications, within an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) of the System Architecture Evolution (SAE) for 3GPP compliant mobile networks. The purpose of the ANDSF is to assist User equipment (UE) to discover non-3GPP access networks—such as Wi-Fi or WIMAX—that can be used for data communications in addition to 3GPP access networks (such as HSPA or LTE) and to provide the UE with rules policing the connection to these networks.
An ANDSF can provide the following information to a UE, based on operator configuration:                Inter-System Mobility Policy (ISMP)—network selections rules for a UE with no more than one active access network connection (e.g., either LTE or Wi-Fi).        Inter-System Routing Policy (ISRP)—network selection rules for a UE with potentially more than one active access network connection (e.g., both LTE and Wi-Fi). Such UE may employ IP Flow Mobility (IFOM), Multiple Access PDN Connectivity (MAPCON) or non-seamless Wi-Fi offload according to operator policy and user preferences.        Discovery Information—a list of networks that may be available in the vicinity of the UE and information assisting the UE to expedite the connection to these networks.        
The ANDSF communicates with the UE over the S14 reference point, which is essentially a synchronization of an OMA-DM Management Object (MO) specific to ANDSF.
Standardization has been focusing on the definition of the S14 interface to cover requirements for the transmission of information between an ANDSF and a UE, understanding the UE as a consumer of Access Network Discovery Information. The standard assumes that the ANDSF is able to return a list of networks (sorted by priority order) that provide services in the geographical area where the UE is currently located, as well as information that allows their discovery.
According to the current art, the operator should provision an ANDSF database. This database should contain enough accurate up-to-date information that lists geographical points and the networks that provide coverage in the surrounding area of that point.
Previous art (see WO 2010/002317) focuses on provisioning a map of inter-access technology neighbor relations. Relationship between neighboring cells of different access networks of the same for different access technologies are maintained including non-3GPP domain neighbor relationships. Focus on the described art is put on configuring a neighbor relations map, as well as sending steering instructions from the network to the reporting terminals.
WO 2010/002317 focuses on reporting network relations. It also describes the detailed information that is transmitted from the wireless terminals to the ANDSF server. This set of information includes at least an access technology and a global cell identity, and may also include a physical cell identity, carrier frequency, carrier bandwidth, registration area identity, network identity, operator identity, cell specific configuration usefulness indicator, success/failure probability of handover or movement in idle mode, and location.
Typically bandwidth in wireless networks is a scarce resource. While it is desired to have a high detailed information of the coverage of wireless networks, it is also true that the number and size of payload of the transmissions between these wireless terminals and the ANDSF server should be kept to a minimum. Additionally, wireless terminals do not have infinite storage and infinite computing power, so care must be taken to minimize the footprint of the monitoring means as for to not consume excessive resources in the terminal. Additionally, the actual contents of payload messages are not specified in detail. It is the goal of the present invention to mitigate these problems in wireless devices used to provisioning ANDSF servers.
To overcome these problems, or at least to mitigate them, the present invention provides for new provisioning wireless devices and method of provisioning ANDSF servers by said provisioning wireless devices.